Iowans urged to have a "Green Halloween"

Black and orange are the traditional colors of Halloween, but the D-N-R is asking you to think “green” too when you say “Boo.” The D-N-R’s Merry Rankin says you can have a more environmentally friendly Halloween by doing a little planning. Rankin says you should choose plates and utensils for parties that can be re-used or composted. Rankin says you should recycle materials you already have on hand for a costume, instead of buying a new one. She suggests giving out candy that doesn’t have a lot of wrappers to throw away.Give out things like fruit, or peanuts in the shell, or things without packages — such as pencils. Rankin says you can also re-use pumpkinsby baking pies or pumpkin bread. And she says you can save landfill space by composting old pumpkins rather than throwing them in the garbage.